Be Like Lincoln, RBG, Your Uncle, and Buddha

Abraham Lincoln was able to look far past Edwin Stanton’s humiliating snub, making Stanton Secretary of War in his cabinet.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg famously said that “It helps sometimes to be a little deaf.”

Your favorite uncle once shrugged off an incredibly rude train ticket agent, and when you commented on it, he said, “I got what I came for – train tickets. What does the agent’s attitude have to do with anything?”

Buddha said (supposedly), “Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.”

The point is… you HAVE to be able to let things go. Whether it was a bad interview, someone rude, something you felt was unfair, or worse – the focus needs to stay on your number one goal, whether that’s getting to an offer, winning a deal, or just getting the right bagel order. Reflecting on what went wrong is good – but energy spent brooding, fuming, replaying events in your head, and asking what if, is wasted. You need that energy! Don’t waste it dwelling on what’s already done.